Bad Decisions--How They Form a Successful Plot
What’s new in my writing room: I’ve gotten such great feedback on my short story collection from my beta readers this past month, so I’m eagerly working on revising (yet again!) and had one story “Downstream” accepted by Appalachian Review from University of North Carolina Press, so I’m encouraged right now. What’s new in your writing room?
Photo by Varju Luceno on UnsplashA student in my classes once complained about her writer's block. She'd started her book with a bang, writing four chapters that just flowed out. Then, she hit chapter 5. Stuck. Nothing happened--either on the page or with the pen.
Remembering a friend's motto, "bad decision make the best stories," I suggested this writer inventory the bad decisions in her chapters.
I asked her to make a list of any moment that a choice went awry, that cause led to challenges instead of smoothness. Search for anything that created unease or more trouble.
I firmly believe the momentum of a story comes from its qualities of risk. If the writer can edge closer to the edge of her story, she'll naturally create tension in the writing. It won't feel good, perhaps, especially if she's someone who likes life on an even keel. But it will raise the stakes, and that's what makes good story.
As she reviewed the plot points she’d chosen, she realized she’d kept her characters very safe. Nothing big happened after that great beginning in chapter 1.
Why? I asked.
She said she was saving the good stuff for later.
Ah, I thought. A bad decision—by the writer.
Don’t save the best for later!Zero bad decisions equal zero momentum. There’s no conflict to propel the character into (you guessed it!) more bad choices.
As she explained her dilemma and her choices, I realized that this writer is a very nice person. She believes in a world where most people are good at heart. She knew she had to get her characters in trouble, but she resisted it in every way. They were like her, good people too. Sure, she had some challenges for them later in the story. But why inflict them now?
I like her, who wouldn't? And I also believe in that kind of world. But not on paper. Not in fiction or memoir, especially if you want to publish today.
I'm not suggesting you have to make murder and mayhem. Bad decisions can just be telling a white lie, and watching the consequences unfold. I asked this writer if she'd ever told a white lie, and she said, "Of course, who hasn't?"
"That’s a bad decision," I said. "List these small inconsistencies, the small mistakes, then transport them one by one into your story."
Inventorying your bad decisionsI loved an exercise in a writing class I took as a MFA student. We were asked to list our bad decisions, the choices we’d made in our lives that we regretted at the time. Huge embarrassments, alliances gone sour, missed opportunities.
We scribbled our lists—which we were told we didn’t have to share.
I had so many! Not getting good help when I opened my first real business. Rushing too soon into a relationship—or three or four. Leaving behind misunderstandings because I couldn’t figure out how to heal them. Losing track of friends I really wanted to keep. Keeping those I was better off losing.
The list went on and on. It felt like a great purge, to do this inventory. Less humiliating that I expected. Because the next step of the exercise taught me even more.
What came of them?The instructor asked us to then write the change or new step that came because of each bad decision. Maybe not all of them would offer something, but many would. What came of each choice?
What I discovered: many times, a bad choice led me to something even better than I had before. Not always. But often. And I began to see that happening in my favorite stories. Bad decisions brought conflict, certainly, but that conflict often resulted in growth and positive change.
So honoring bad decisions—in life and on the page—shows us what we gain from conflict.
My student went into her manuscript again and came out with a reasonable list. Her narrator wasn’t so untouched by bad decisions as she thought. She just had to bring them to light, make them visible to the reader, then show what came of them.
It made her story eons better.
We've all made bad decisions. We've been on the receiving end of other people's, too. They are hard to forget, no matter how hard we try.
Think of one. Then remember your "story" after the bad decision. It probably had drama, movement, energy, and consequences.
That's what you're after in your writing.
Your Weekly Writing ExerciseThis week, write about one really bad decision you made in your life. Write about it in all its glory. I like to set a kitchen timer for 15 minutes, to limit the agony. Maybe you're far enough away to not feel the pain of it again, but if you do feel some embarrassment or unease as you write, good thing--because it'll make the writing that much more emotionally grabbing for a reader.
Now look at your story. List the character’s bad decisions, small and large. Where are they placed in the plot? Remember, they are the propellant for your story. If they are clumped together, they'll create a bang, yes, but the long period of nothing happening that follows the bang will read like a whimper. Or worse, a flat line.
If you don't have many bad decisions on your list, make another list. Write down 10 things your character would never do. (Use this equally for memoir or fiction.) Now write one scene, one moment, using one item on the list--imagining it happening. Imagine the bad decision and the shame, embarrassment, bad news that follows. Cause and effect, right? That's what story is made of.
See if this provides momentum. Gets you unstuck. Out of that "still life."
Shout Out!I love to give a shout out to writing friends and former students who are publishing their books and encourage my newsletter community to pre-order or order a copy to show your support of fellow writers. Be sure to let me know if you are a former student and will publish soon (pre-orders of your book are available now), or have in the past two months! Just email me at mary[at]marycarrollmoore[dot]com to be included in a future Shout Out! (I’ll keep your listing here for two months.)
Mary Walerak, Finding Alineade (Kirk House Publishers), August
Karen Lueck, The Green Thread: Reclaiming Our Spiritual Authority (Goodness Press), September
James Francisco Bonilla, An Eye for an I: Growing Up with Blindness, Bigotry, and Family Mental Illness (University of Minnesota Press), November
I’m a lifelong artist, and I love to inspire and support other creative folk, which is why I write this weekly newsletter. My goal with these posts is to help you strengthen your writing practice and creative life so it becomes more satisfying to you.
I’m also the author of 15 books in 3 genres. My third novel, Last Bets (Riverbed Press), was published in April, after becoming an Amazon bestseller during pre-orders. My second novel, A Woman’s Guide to Search & Rescue, was published in October 2023 and also became an Amazon bestseller and Hot New Release from pre-orders. For twelve years, I worked as a full-time food journalist, most notably through my weekly column for the Los Angeles Times syndicate. My writing-craft book, Your Book Starts Here, won the New Hampshire Literary Awards “People’s Choice” in 2011 and my first novel, Qualities of Light, was nominated for PEN/Faulkner and Lambda Literary awards in 2009. I’ve written Your Weekly Writing Exercise every Friday since 2008.
